SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- When the Guardians announced Welbyn Francisca as the headliner of their 2023 international signing class, he was seen as a prospect with enormous upside despite his modest stature. Even as a teenager, Francisca had oodles of bat speed, which gave credence to the idea that as he

The Arizona Fall League wrapped up its third full week, with both hitters and pitchers continuing to excel in slugger-friendly environments, which featured four multihomer games, three on the same day, as the first half of the season wrapped up. Numerous prospects have been shining in the Arizona sun, but

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – A self-described beach boy from Gold Coast, Australia, Kailen Hamson had never been to America before he got on a plane and landed in St. Louis in 2021. His first reaction was that he had made a terrible mistake.

The leaves may be continuing to change and temperatures starting to drop, but the hitters are only getting hotter in the Arizona Fall League. Twenty-nine homers were hit by 22 players during the third week of play in the desert. Dozens of bats recorded multihit showings, with three of them

The 34th annual Arizona Fall League season is underway, and you can watch top prospects from all 30 MLB organizations throughout October and November as AFL matchups are once again streaming for free on both MLB.com (here and on the AFL site) and MLB.TV. All but five games of the

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Caleb Bonemer arrived in the Arizona Fall League with clear instructions: pack your outfield glove, and get as much in-game action as you can. Three weeks into the AFL season, MLB Pipeline’s No. 27 overall prospect is repacking that same glove and headed into the offseason, leaving

The release of the Arizona Fall League rosters always acts as a wonderful balm for prospect fans. The Minor League season is winding down with the postseason and the fear of not being able to track future stars until next season is assuaged with the knowledge that some of the

PEORIA, Ariz. -- When Boston Baro connected on a three-run homer to the right of the batter’s eye at Peoria Sports Complex on Thursday, there were the typical big-moment caveats. It gave Surprise a 5-1 lead over Peoria in the sixth inning. It was the first of five combined homers

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PEORIA, Ariz. -- Tekoah Roby returned to the mound at full throttle, or so it seemed. After last year’s Tommy John surgery, the Cardinals’ No. 14 prospect made his 2026 debut for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League on Oct. 9 and averaged 97.0 mph over 15 four-seam fastballs thrown

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Peyton Olejnik knows what you’re thinking. How in the world did a 6-foot-11 kid -- 7 feet in cleats! -- from basketball-mad Indiana become a full-time baseball player, forgoing the hardwood for the pitching rubber? The rest of the Olejnik clan is vertically inclined, but Peyton’s growth

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Everyone knows one another in Hedgesville, West Virginia, which boasted a population of just 300 during the most recent census at the turn of the decade. There’s a Subway, a Burger King and three stop lights. There’s even a King’s New York Pizza, which in hindsight, could

Royals catching prospect Brooks Bryan had waited since April 21 to round the bases again after a home run. On Oct. 6, a 442-foot drive to center field at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale finally ended that wait. Now, those trips are coming more often. Bryan has

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. –- Kevin Bazzell hadn’t caught fellow Nationals prospect Jarlin Susana until Aug. 11 with High-A Wilmington, Susana’s first rehab outing of the season following last year’s lat surgery. Bazzell was behind the plate for Susana once more during the regular season on Sept. 12 for Double-A Rochester and

PEORIA, Ariz. -- Long after all of his Glendale Desert Dogs teammates had gone inside, Chase Harlan stood at the hot corner underneath the Arizona sun before Tuesday’s game and had infield coach Philip Caulfield pepper grounders to his left, right and in front of him. Even after a short

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Briggs McKenzie thought the dream was over. Growing up as a Braves fan in North Carolina, he got to live out a childhood realization when he put pen to paper and signed with the organization as a fourth-round pick in the 2025 Draft, receiving an over-slot bonus

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- There were 45,485 fans in Citizens Bank Park on Oct. 23, 2022 when Bryce Harper drilled his iconic go-ahead three-run homer in NLCS Game 5 to help send the Phillies to the World Series. One of them was Ryan Dromboski, a native of Hamilton, New Jersey, who

PEORIA, Ariz. -– Unable to bear watching the 2025 Draft, Justin DeCriscio went upstairs in his Southern California home to flip through his phone, catch something else on TV, basically anything that would help distract him while parents John and Jill watched broadcast downstairs. DeCriscio had been through it the

The Arizona Fall League is entering its third full week and players have found their groove. Last week, several pitchers twirled not only scoreless but hitless outings, batters while combined for 18 homers -- including two grand slams -- and dozens of multihit performances. Numerous prospects shined under the Arizona

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Tai Peete was the owner, operator and main supplier of the electric factory at Scottsdale Stadium on Monday. Here’s just some of what the Cardinals’ No. 17 prospect accomplished in Peoria’s 5-0 win over Scottsdale: a 109.4 mph leadoff double, a 112 mph third-inning triple, a fifth-inning

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- When the Cubs selected right-hander Dominick Reid in the third round of the 2025 Draft out of Abilene Christian, he was largely a two-pitch hurler. Just over a year after that selection, the club's No. 28 prospect is enjoying a spin through the Arizona Fall League while

With two weeks in the books, the 34th edition of the Arizona Fall League has already featured a number of exciting performances and loud tools. Players have been making up for time lost to injuries and are earning several more weeks of look at the "prospect finishing school." There was

GOODYEAR, Ariz. – Miguel Mendez has signature heat, and the Padres know it well from his time in the organization that ran until this most recent Trade Deadline, when he was moved to the Giants in a deal for Robbie Ray. As part of an Arizona Fall League tripleheader at

GOODYEAR, Ariz. – Patrick Forbes played both ways as a University of Louisville freshman and for one plate appearance as a Cardinals sophomore until a broken hand put an end to that, forcing him onto the mound full-time. The move paid off. He went to the D-backs with the 29th

SURPRISE, Ariz. – Call Sebastian Walcott the Windbreaker. With gusts blowing in from right-center around 20 mph at Surprise Stadium on Friday, MLB Pipeline’s No. 8 overall prospect crushed maybe the truest-hit ball of the afternoon in the first inning of Surprise’s 12-5 win over Mesa, a 98 mph, 397-foot